Seeing Stars
by abiholmes97
Summary: This is my first fic for The Mentalist. It's set six years after the show ended and gives an insight into how I hope Jane and Lisbon's lives turned out. It's just a short sweet story. No major plot points. Enjoy. Please R R
1. Prologue

**A/N: **This part is taken directly from the show's finale. As a disclaimer, I own nothing. I just really loved this scene **A/N**

**Prologue:**

_Patrick Jane was sat with his new wife by the side, looking on as their friends and family danced the night away. No one had noticed them disappear and now they sat enjoying each other's company. _

_"__How are you feeling?" he smiled and turned his head to look at his wife. _

_"__I'm so happy!" Teresa replied, her face breaking into a smile_

_Patrick's smile got wider, if that was even possible. He was so happy he felt like he might burst. "Me too!" he replied. He looked back out over the lake and repeated, "me too."_

_There was silence for a few moments. Only the sounds of the crickets and the distant partiers could be heard. Patrick felt Teresa slip her hand in his. It was a movement that had become so normal now that he didn't shift his focus. _

_"__There's something I need to tell you." She said, looking at him. Jane turned his gaze back to hers and looked at her for a few moments. His eyes then wandered down to her stomach where a single hand was resting, almost as if it were protecting something. His eyes locked back with his wife's and he smiled._

_"__No, you're… you're kidding me…" He couldn't believe it. _

_"__I'm not kidding." She replied. _

_"__You are?" he asked, his voice trembling slightly. _

_"__I am." She confirmed softly. _

_Patrick and Teresa looked at each other. He laughed softly and kissed her, pulling her in for a hug. He held her gently, enjoying the moment, grinning from ear to ear…_


	2. Chapter 1

\- SIX YEARS LATER-

**Chapter One: Sunshine Fun**

"Daddy! Daddy! Catch me!"

Patrick Jane looked around just in time to see his six-year-old daughter launch herself off the swing and into his arms. She giggled as she flung her arms round his neck. Jane took a few steps backwards as the impact hit him, but he quickly wrapped his arms round her and hugged her tightly.

"Did you see how high I went, daddy?" she asked, grinning.

"I did, Willow, you were so high, I thought I was going to have to call the International Space Station to see if they had seen you!"

She giggled again and Jane put her down. She ran off to the tree by the lake where Jane and Rigsby had built a tree house for the children to play in. Maddie and Willow were three years apart in age and were quite close. Jane watched his daughter climb up the ladder and disappear into the house where she was probably having a tea-party. He stood there for a few minutes, reminding himself how lucky he was to have a second chance at this, at a family life. When Angela and Charlotte died, he never dreamed he would be that happy again. But then he met Teresa Lisbon and everything changed. And now he had a second chance.

"Ouch!" Jane was brought to his senses by a crashing sound. He spun round and saw his son lying under his bike. He ran over.

"Toby? Are you ok?" he asked, pulling the bike from on top of him. Jane's eyes connected with his son's and he was lost for a second. Toby had his mother's eyes, beautifully green but they were brimming with tears. He quickly scooped his son up and held him tight.

"Hey, it's ok." He said softly, stroking his golden curled hair, "It's just a little bump, happens all the time."

Toby sniffed, "Did you ever fall off your bike?"

"All the time." Jane smiled reassuringly. He placed Toby back down on his two feet and picked up the bike, "The trick is always to get back on, even if you fall off."

"But… what if I fall off again?" Toby asked, his bottom lip tembling as he looked at the bike, fear in his eyes.

Patrick crouched down and looked his four-year-old in the eyes, "You will. Plenty of times, but that doesn't mean that you stop. Never ever stop trying, Toby." He held the bike firmly in one hand and picked up Toby with the other. Carefully, he placed Toby on the bike. "Go on!" he encouraged, standing back.

Toby placed his feet on the pedals and began to move. He was wobbly at first, but when he stayed on the bike, he gained confidence. He began to laugh, "Look, Daddy, look! I'm…I'm riding a bike!"

Patrick smiled, "Of course you are!"

Teresa poked her head out of the house just in time to see her son whizz past on his bike. She looked in the direction that he had come from and saw her husband, stood with one hand shielding his eyes, watching his son, grinning from ear to ear. She wandered over to where he was stood and linked her arm with his, resting her head on his shoulder.

"So, since when could Toby ride his bike?" she asked him, smiling.

"Since about three minutes ago." He replied.

"He was determined to do it."

"Now it will be hard to stop him."

"Where's Willow?" Teresa asked, looking around.

"In the tree house." He replied, "She was on the swing."

"Ah."

Jane looped his arm round his wife's shoulders and pulled her in. They stood like that for a while, watching Toby race around on his bike and see Willow poke her head out of the tree house window every now and then. Eventually, she descended, and the family played chase, running in and out of the trees. After a while, Teresa took Toby inside to use the toilet and Patrick and Willow went for a walk around the lake. For a while, they walked in a comfortable silence, Willow holding onto Jane's hand. Then they stopped by the log that Patrick had proposed to Teresa on. He sat down in the shade and watched his daughter laughing and throwing sticks and stones into the lake.

He couldn't help but imagining what life would have been like if Charlotte and Angela hadn't died. Would they have had this kind of a life? Would he still be a psychic, conning people out of their money, or would he have become an honest man? He supposed he would never know. Sometimes, if he looked at Willow, there were certain things that she did or phrases she used that reminded him of Charlotte. She could make him laugh, make him dizzy, make him crazy, but he loved her and he would never stop loving her.

"Daddy? Why are you sad?" a small voice brought Jane out of his musings.

"Hmm?" he looked up and saw Willow standing over him, "Oh, I'm not sad, sweetie, I'm just thinking."

"You're crying."

Jane placed a hand on his cheek and it came away damp. He smiled at her and patted for her to sit down. "I'm not sad, Willow, I'm actually very happy."

"Then why are you crying?" she asked.

"I was thinking about my other daughter." He paused, "She was a lot like you!" and he tapped her nose.

Willow giggled, "Where is she?"

"She died, a long time ago now."

"I'm sorry."

He shook his head, "Don't be. It happened a long time ago now." He looked at her, "I have you, and Mommy, and Toby, and I think she would want me to be happy now, which I am."

"I'm very happy you're my daddy." She said, holding his hand and looking into his eyes, "I wouldn't want anyone else to be my daddy."

Jane felt a lump form in his throat. He kissed the top of her forehead, "Thank you, Willow. I love you."

She smiled, "I love you too."

"Now, how about you show me what you were doing?"

They spent the next half an hour skimming stones until they heard Lisbon shouting for them. They ran hand in hand back round to the house and washed up for dinner.

Lisbon smiled as he walked over to her.

"Have fun?" she asked.

He nodded, "Of course."

She smiled, "Good."

"I love you." He said, kissing her gently.

"I love you too." She replied, and with that, they all sat down to eat together.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two: Night-Time Wishes**

Dinner that evening was a pleasantly straightforward affair. Both Willow and Toby were well behaved for a change and they got through eating without a meltdown. After dinner, Patrick lay on the sitting room floor playing with Toby while Willow helped her mother to do the dishes. They didn't insist upon it, but it was encouraged that Willow help out around the house. She didn't mind. She loved spending time with her mom, even if it meant washing or drying the dishes, or changing her bed. Lisbon enjoyed these moments knowing that as their children grew up, it was going to become harder and harder to get them to do anything without a fuss.

"Do you mind taking over for a moment, Will. I just need to run to the bathroom?"

Willow nodded, "Sure thing, Mom." And she stood at the sink, reaching for the next plate. As she washed, she began to hum the tune to a song that she'd heard at school. The humming progressed to a quiet singing.

"_Just like a moth drawn to a flame. Oh, you lured me in I couldn't sense the pain. Your bitter heart cold to the touch. Now I'm gonna reap what I sow, I'm left seeing red on my own." _

"What you singing, Wills?" her mother's voice made her jump out of her skin.

She smiled, "Something I heard at school. I can't remember all of it."

"Well, it was beautiful anyway." Teresa looked at her daughter and then at the sink, "All done?" she asked

Willow nodded, "Can I watch TV for a bit?"

"Have you done your homework?"

Willow nodded

"Have you checked it?" Lisbon asked.

Willow thought and didn't reply.

"Check it please."

"Okay." Sighed Willow and she ran off to find her school bag.

Half an hour later, Lisbon had bathed Toby and now they were sat watching cartoons while he had his milk and Willow was in the bath. Jane came over and sat next to her with a cup of tea.

"Toby?" he asked.

Toby looked up at his father.

"Who do you want to put you to bed tonight?" he asked.

Toby thought about it for a minute and then said, "Momma. I want Mommy."

Teresa looked apologetic but Jane just shrugged. He knew that when Toby was tired he only wanted one person and he was fine with that. When he was tired, he only wanted Lisbon too.

'Oh, Rigsby rang today." Lisbon mentioned.

"Oh?" asked Patrick, curious.

"Wanted to know if we wanted to get together with the kids next weekend. Go to the Zoo, something like that."

Patrick nodded, "Sounds good to me." He took a sip from his cup, "I'm guessing it will be both Ben and Madeline."

"I should have thought so." Lisbon replied, "Why?"

"No reason."

Teresa smiled and shook her head.

"Are we going to get to see Maddie again soon?" their daughter asked, peeping her head over the sofa.

Lisbon jumped and Jane smiled.

"You know, Wills, you are worse than your father for sneaking up on people." She laughed. Jane reached over the side of the sofa and pulled his daughter into his lap. She snuggled back against him and shut her eyes for a minute. Jane rested his chin on her head and breathed in the smell of her shampoo. _Strawberries and Cream. _It smelt of innocence and history, of love and of calm. He shut his eyes and breathed deeply.

"So?" Willow asked her parents again, "Are we seeing Aunty Gracie, Uncle Rigsby, Maddie and Ben again?"

"We're in the middle of working it out. We don't know any more than you right now." Lisbon explained.

Willow nodded, "I hope we do. I want to show Maddie my cartwheels that we've been learning in gym class and I can show her my new doll and my dress for the school disco at the end of the month and…"

"Okay, Willow, we get it." Her mother smiled, "How about I call Aunt Grace in the morning and work something out."

"Oh yes, please, Mommy. Please!" she gave her a big smile, slid off her fathers lap and headed into the kitchen.

"I hope you're getting a glass of milk, young lady!" Lisbon called after her.

Fifteen minutes later, Toby was asleep, Teresa was downstairs and Patrick was stood in his daughter's doorway, watching as she brushed her hair and climbed into bed.

"What story are we having tonight, Dad?" she asked, as she settled beneath the sheets.

"Oh, I thought I would tell you one." He replied, pulling up a chair and sitting by her bedside.

"Cool. What's it about?" she asked.

"A beautiful young girl who lived by the ocean and spent her days playing in the sun."

"I can't wait to hear it."

"Well, get all comfy under those sheets. Have you got Happy Bear?" he asked.

She nodded and clutched to her bear, smiling at her father.

"Well then," he smiled, "Once upon a time there was a beautiful little girl. She had golden hair and rosy cheeks and a smile that could light up even the darkest night. She lived with her mommy and her daddy, by the beach and every night she would listen to the waves crashing against the shore and she would know that she was safe, she would know that she was calm. Nothing could hurt her, not so long as the waves crashed upon the shore and the moon shone in the sky. Now the little girl liked to go for walks along the beach with her parents and she would look for pebbles and shells to put in her room. She would play chase with her parents and run in and out of the waves, in and out of the waves that would playfully lap at her ankles as she ran."

He paused for a moment and looked at his daughter. Willow's eyes were beginning to droop so he resumed the story in a hushed voice, using one hand to stroke her head and one hand to hold onto her hand. "And every night, the little girl would sit with her parents and they would read a story together and then the mommy and the daddy would tuck her into bed. Her mommy would kiss her forehead and her daddy would kiss her cheek. And then they would leave her to sleep and as they were leaving, the daddy would look at her and say, 'You are safe, you are loved, you are wise.'"

Patrick looked down and saw that Willow was fast asleep. He kissed her forehead and he kissed her cheek. He switched off the lamp and left the room. As he reached the doorway, he turned back and said, "You are safe, you are loved, you are wise."


	4. Epilogue

**Epilogue:**

_Once downstairs, Jane saw that the door to the yard was open. He looked out and saw Lisbon standing in the moonlight, a camisole wrapped round her shoulders, her hair floating in the wind. Patrick smiled and walked out to meet her. _

_"__Hey." She said, smiling at him. _

_"__Hey yourself." He replied, "You ok?"_

_"__Always." There was a pause and she looked out over the lake, "Are you happy?"_

_Patrick turned to look at her, "I'm happier than I have been in years, Teresa, you know that." He smiled, "I'm so happy."_

_"__Me too." She smiled back, "So, I might have something to tell you."_

_Patrick smiled, "Why am I getting the strongest sense of de ja vu?" he asked._

_Lisbon smiled and took his hands. She placed them on her abdomen and looked up at him. _

_Patrick smiled back, completely in love. He leaned down and kissed her softly. _

_"__I love you, Teresa, I hope you know that."_

_"__Oh, I think I do." She replied. _

_Patrick wrapped his arm round her shoulder and held her close. They looked out over the lake and up at the moon that was glowing in the sky. _

_"__Now, we just have to tell the two we already have." Sighed Lisbon. _

_"__Oh, that should be easy." Smiled Patrick._

_"__You have a plan?" she asked_

_"__Meh. Maybe."_

_"__Are you going to tell me?"_

_Patrick thought for a minute, "No." he replied, smiling._

_Lisbon hit him on the shoulder, "Jerk," she muttered under her breath._

_"__Heard that." He replied, kissing the top of her head._

_"__Good." Was her reply. _

THE END


End file.
